Friday, November 06, 2009

When Oregon State last visited Berkeley two years ago, it resulted in quarterback Kevin Riley's most forgettable moment at Cal. He tried to run for a touchdown with no timeouts remaining, and the clock ran out in a 31-28 loss. Now, Riley has come full circle. He made all the right decisions while orchestrating a flawless two-minute drive to beat Arizona State last weekend. It was the first time he had been in that position since the blunder against the Beavers. "If I was now in that situation, I just would have thrown the ball out of bounds right away," Riley said of the game two years ago. "It's just something you learn from, and I've learned from it and gotten better." Oregon State will see a much different quarterback Saturday than it did two years ago. Riley was forced into his first collegiate start because of an ankle injury to Nate Longshore and had an uneven performance. But he almost led the Bears back from a 31-21 deficit, first completing a 64-yard touchdown pass to Lavelle Hawkins, and then taking over at the Cal 5-yard line with 1:27 remaining and marching the team downfield before the stunning ending.